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Hello to all of our followers and newcomers. Here’s a special piece from our friend over at Wookiefragger Gaming.

The First-Person shooter is one of the most popular and enduring game genres, with a rich history that includes some of the most important video games ever made. In the 2000s, shooters would come to flood the market, and with each passing year, it became more difficult for the cream to rise to the top, but in the 1990s, the genre was marked by mighty classics that stood out like redwoods among the bushes. I’m referring to games like Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem 3D, Goldeneye… and Half-Life.

“A person seemingly with no voice, the character of Gordon Freeman only emerges through his actions, and with no morality -or lack thereof ascribed to him by anything other than the decisions of the player”

During that decade, realtime 3D graphics were going through some rapid growth spurts, and standing apart from the rest of the pack was often accomplished by trying out new ideas as the technology allowed, but sometimes, a game could distinguish itself by polishing ideas that were previously explored, but limited by hardware constraints, and Half-Life is pretty much the exemplar of this. Some of the greatest strengths of the first-person genre are its intensity, instant gratification, and its ability to immerse players into the mindset of the game, and Valve, the developers of played to these strengths by designing the game as one long, continuous environment, broken up only by the occasional loading screen. But never a level transition.

The primary setting of the game (the Black Mesa Research facility), is a fully realized setting, with dark secrets, strange quirks, and a cold, cynical logic in its design. Much like Shadow Moses Island in Metal Gear Solid, Black Mesa is a place where the left hand was never intended to know what the right hand was doing, and now that things have gone wrong, the powers responsible are still trying to manipulate events from the shadows, with the player caught in the middle.

“The primary setting of the game (the Black Mesa Research facility), is a fully realized setting, with dark secrets, strange quirks, and a cold, cynical logic in its design”

In Metal Gear, this meant Solid Snake, but in Half-Life, this just means you. Well, technically it means Gordon Freeman, (Half-Life’s protagonist) but Gordon is a character devoid of characterization. A person seemingly with no voice, the character of Gordon Freeman only emerges through his actions, and with no morality -or lack thereof ascribed to him by anything other than the decisions of the player. While the game mostly only lets you interact with situations and people in terms of violence, not everyone in the game is an enemy, and the possibility for selfishness exists in these interactions with friendly non-player characters. Do you try to save the scientists, or just try to survive? Do you ask the guard to accompany you, or do you take his weapon for yourself? In terms of the greater plot, these moments don’t count for much, but, assuming that you finish the game, how you played it will have defined whether or not Gordon was a hero, or just a survivor.

Half-Life’s impact on first-person game design really cannot be overstated. The game made heavy use of scripted sequences in order to advance its plot as well as to shock, astound, or otherwise provide satisfaction to the player, and all of this without ever resorting to the use of cut scenes. While games at large wouldn’t ultimately treat in-game scripted sequences as an alternative to cinematics, their use became a staple of the medium in the years following Half-Life’s arrival, and these kinds of sequences are often among the most memorable parts of any game. It certainly -obviously- wasn’t the first game to marry the progression of a game’s story with the actual act of playing the game, and that’s not the kind of credit I’m trying to give it here. However, it did it all so expertly that once the game proved to be a commercial triumph, an entire industry snapped to attention and started taking notes.

“Half-Life’s impact on first-person game design really cannot be overstated. The game made heavy use of scripted sequences in order to advance its plot as well as to shock, astound, or otherwise provide satisfaction to the player”

When compared to the other classic shooters of its day, Half-Life didn’t distinguish itself through its technical or gameplay innovations. Instead, it was distinguished by its craft. A frantic and chaotic thrill ride with an eerie science-fiction yarn, and sold by detailed environments and intense scenarios it sparked positive changes in first-person game design. It is still a source of pure excitement for gamers, as well as inspiration for developers. Every part of what made Half-Life great could be seen in other games before its arrival, but collected and employed in the service of Gordon Freeman’s harrowing adventure, each separate element sings together in harmony. It is this culmination of possibilities that makes Half-Life a shining example of the genre, and to this day, it still stands as one of the finest testaments to the potential of the first-person shooter.

Thanks again to Wookiefragger Gaming! Subscribe to his YouTube channel for more if you liked what you read. And feel free to follow us on twitter @TehLunchboxPub!

MapleStory 2 has officially launched its free-to-play game on October 10, 2018! It’s only available on Microsoft Windows so far.

Graphically, the game has changed from being a side-scroller and has upgraded to 3D-graphics as well as procured the popular blocky style that Minecraft is known for. The interface has become simpler to navigate as well.

Despite the upgrade Nexon decided to stick to their soundtrack which personally brought me joy and nostalgia.

If you’re interested in checking out this game, follow this link! And if you liked what your read feel free to follow us @TehLunchboxPub!

Nintendo was proud to announce a new mythical Pokémon by the name of Meltan. According to what they have released so far, it is a Steel-type, Hex-Nut Pokémon with the height of eight inches and weight of 17.6 pounds.

“Most of Meltan’s body is made from liquid metal, and its shape is very fluid. It can use its liquid arms and legs to corrode metal and absorb it into its own body.

Meltan generates electricity using the metal it absorbs from outside sources. It uses this electricity as an energy source and also as an attack that can be fired from its eye.

Clearly a curious Pokémon, Meltan is very expressive and shows an interest in all kinds of things.”

I’ve got to admit, I haven’t been playing Pokémon Go as much as a Pokémon fanatic should considering the pending Pokémon Let’s Go: Eevee!/Pikachu! to be released in November 16, 2018, but imagine my surprise when I open up the app to be greeted by these nut-shaped creatures.

At first I thought this Pokémon was a Unown, but after a few minutes of squinting and inquiring my friend about this critter, we came to the conclusion that this was possibly a new Pokémon? Perhaps Nintendo is laying breadcrumbs for their fans to follow. Even Global Marketing Lead for Pokémon Go, Kento Suga, posted a picture of the new creature with the caption “???”

It has been a long time coming, but Nintendo announced that the Nintendo Switch will be releasing an Animal Crossing game! In the clip Tom Nook mentions Isabelle joined the fight in Smash, and even acknowledges the Animal Crossing mobile app.

They have not revealed any details about the upcoming game other than that it will be coming out in 2019. If you liked what you read, feel free to follow us @TehLunchboxPub!

Since E3 has ended, it’s given me some time to contemplate the games I found that stood out to me the most. It was tough. We were treated to so many announcements, but there were some definitive trailers that have caught my eye.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Set within the glorious Greece timeline, we’re introduced to familiar but fresh combat systems and flexibility with a whole new twist on our main character and the overall development they acquire from the trailer.Continue reading →

Another E3 has come and gone with surprising annoucements, reveals, and more games to be looking forward to later this year and the following year, it’s that time again to discuss which game truly stood and which conference takes the gold.

At this year’s E3, many games were shown off that grabbed our attention, and our wallets, although only a handful of titles truly deserved it.

God of War picks up right were the last one left off; there is no time to breathe as you ride upon the shoulders of Gaia and her titian army while marching towards the base of Olympus. Zeus and his brothers are in disarray, not fully understanding the depth of the danger they are in, or the magnitude of the monster Zeus had created. “The hands of Death could not defeat him, the sisters of Fate could not hold him, he will have his revenge!”

Trailers for Batman Ninja had started spreading early 2018 for the movie produced by Warner Bros. studio. Kazuki Nakashima and Takashi Okazaki were contacted for the story and character design respectively.* With each having success in previous outings and making landmark pieces in anime, it seemed like a great experience waiting to happen. Perhaps it is for the Japanese version, but I’m reviewing the English version since I’m interested in how well they can localize such a fusion of American pop culture and the style of anime.

Visuals

The visuals are amazing, as to be expected from Afro Samurai’s Takeshi Okazaki. With beautiful animation and visually eye-catching designs, the colors work well against the cell shading resulting in some very good and sometimes interesting moments. None of the designs stray far enough from their character origins to be unrecognizable, (save Jason Todd) but still remind you what time period the story is in. Continue reading →

Bethesda, one of the most well-known gaming companies in 2018 has come to E3 for their fourth showcase. If E3 were a game of poker among these game developers, then Bethesda just showed their hand, and it seems like a high-end full house. Starting the night off with an opening from Andrew W.K performing Ready to Die while leading into the RAGE 2 demonstration.Continue reading →